Combination air cleaner and chaff screen



Sept. 22, 1953 M. T. MOLER 2,652,901

I COMBINATION AIR CLEANER AND CHAF'F SCREEN Filed May 51, 1950 0 0000000 00000 ocouoocooooooooa fizz/e 7275-07" JZ'aurz'ce ZTJZ'oZer-Patented Sept. 22, 1953 COMBINATION AIR CLEANER AND CHAFF SCREEN MauriceT. Moler, Homewood, Ill., assignor to United Specialties Company,

corporation of. Delaware Application May- 31, 1950, Serial N. 165,325 6Claims. (01. 183-15) This invention relates to a combined air cleanerand chaff screen.

t has for one object to provide a construction in which air cleaningmeans are combined with a so-called chaii screen, the purpose of whichis to separate from the inwardly moving column of air or gas the largerand coarser particles of foreign matter of any shape. Although, as thename implies, chaif and relatively flat, extended particles of materialwill be readily separated, the device will also separate material ofsub-- stantial' size, irrespective of its shape.

Another object is to provide, in combination with an oil bath aircleaner, means for separating relatively large particles, such as chaff,from the inwardly moving column of air before it reaches the air cleanerproper, and to provide these means in a single unitary cleaner assembly.

Other objects will appear from time to time in the specification andclaims.

The invention is illustrated more or less dia-- grammatically in theaccompanying drawing, wherein:

The sole figure is a vertical, sectional view through one form of thedevice;

Like parts are indicated by like" characters in the specification anddrawing.

In the particular form here shown, the inven-- tion is embodied in anoil bath air cleaner to which is added an outer screen in such a manneras to comprise a compact unit or unitary assembly. By this meansefiicient operation is assured and a substantial saving of space isaccomplished.

The outer screen I is preferably formed of. per= forated sheet materialand may be formed of perforated sheet metal, the perforations of which.

are small enough to exclude particles of chaff and other relativelylarge foreign matter which would otherwise tend to clog the filter andto interfere with satisfactory operation of the oil.

bath. air cleaner.

A ring-like member 2 is positioned to engage the lower end of the screenI and to slide into it. It is preferably integral with a ring-likemember 3 and is joined to it by a continuous member 4 which is shaped toprovide an annular depression: or groove 5. One or more perforations 6are formed in the groove 5.

The oil bath cleaner proper comprises an outer casing. l which. isshaped to provide a plurality of openings 8. These are arranged aboutthe periphery of the member 7 and provide, in effect,

an annular inlet. Adjacent its lower edge, the member I is shaped toprovide a shoulder 9. It is inwardly and downwardly curved, as at ID, to

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provide, in effect, a second shoulder, and it is finally inwardly anddownwardly shaped, as at H, to provide a relatively deep and cup-likepor tion. This cup-like portion maybe shaped to provide a plurality ofstiffening ribs l 2, if desired.

Atits. inner end, the. cup member is provided with an upwardly extendingcylindrical portion [3 which is secured by welding, or otherwise, toan.outletpassageforming member it, which may be provided with anintegral portion of reduced diameter It. The member I5 is shouldered, asat i6, andv provided: with. a. further reduced portion H.

A. gasket or sealing member I8 ispositioned upon. the shoulder 16 andsupports a bafile memher, which comprises; an inner concavo-convexportion it. Integral with. this portion is an outwardly and downwardlyinclined portion 2% which terminates in a peripheral downwardly directedflange 21. A plurality of louvres or openings 22 is formed in the bafflemember, and adjacent each louvre is positioned a downwardly and inwardlydirected, inclined portion 23' which. is formed of material inwardly anddownwardly displaced when the louvres- 22. are formed.

A filter body is supported upon the shoulder I6 and is positioned, uponthe shoulder l6 and is positionedv above the baffle member [8. Thefilter body is bounded by an inward tubular member 2d which forms acontinuation of the outlet passage !5 and. is slightly telescoped withregard tothat passage, The member 2 3 is provided withaflange 25adiacentit's bottom and the baiile portion til rests upon the flange 25.The member 2t is outwardly flared, at 23 at its upper end, and. isprovided with, a downwardly bent lip 2'? at its periphery. The shellwhich completes the filter-containing member comprises an annular part23 provided with a plurality of spoke-like members 29: which areintegral with a ring-like portion 36 positioned upon. the baffle portion2'9 and terminating in an upwardly extending tubular section at which isin contact with and secured in the member 24. Thus, the members 2% and25; form together an annular enclosing means within which is positioned.a filter mass This filter mass is formed of any desired material and maycomprise metal, wool, synthetic material, natural hair or wool, or amixture of any of these. Positioned generally at the bottom of themember 28, is a screen 33 which rests upon the spokes 2d and supportsthe filter mass 32. The upper surface of the filter mass is held inplace by a screen member 35 which, at its inner portion, extendsbeneaththe lip El and contacts the flared portion 23 of the tubular member 24.At its outer edge, the screen 35 approaches or contacts the upperportion 36 of the member 28, which may, if desired, be outwardly flared,as at 31. The portion 36 terminates in an outwardly directed flange 38.

A cover plate 39 is positioned to overlie the filter body and the partswhich enclose it, and at its outer edge is inwardly bent, a at 4!), toengage the flange 38 of the shell 28. The flange 4d rests upon the upperedge of the member I, which may be defined by an outwardly bent flange4|, as shown, although this flange is not necessary.

A cleaner of the type shown is normally positioned upon a carburetor orupon a member connected to a carburetor so that air passing through thecleaner and emerging cleaned is directed to the carburetor. As shown,the member 42 may be considered the inlet passage to a carburetor. It ispreferably provided with a laterally directed, outwardly projectingflange 43 upon which a gasket 44 may be positioned. The cleaner ispositioned about the upper end of the passage 2-2 and is supported bythe flange 43 and rests upon the gasket 44. The member 42 i providedwith legs 45 which are joined as at 46 to an inwardly threaded memberinto which the threaded portion ii of a stud 48 is received. A studguiding and supporting member 49 may be positioned within the conduitportion 24. The member 49 extends transversely of the conduit and isprovided at its ends with laterally bent portions 55 which are securedto the portion 24. The member 49 is shaped, as at to receive and toprovide a bearing for the stud. The stud passes through a perforation 52in the cover plate 39 and is provided with a shoulder 53. A stirrup 54fits freely about the stud and is positioned beneath the shoulder 53. Atits upper ends, as at 55, the stirrup is secured to an over-all coverplate 56. The stud passes freely through a perforation in the plate 55and through the opening in a gasket or sealing member 51 fixed in thecover plate 56. The stud carries at its upper end a thumb nut 58, bymeans of which it may be rotated. The cover plate 56 is providedadjacent its outer edge with a downwardly directed flange 59 whichembraces the upper edge of the screen I and is secured to it by weldingor otherwise.

Although I have shown an operative form of my invention, it will berecognized that many changes in the form, shape and arrangement of partscan be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and myshowing is, therefore, to be taken as, in a sense, diagrammatic.

The use and operation of this invention are as follows:

The device in the form generally shown may be mounted upon a carburetoror upon any conduit means through which cleaned air is to be directed toa point of use or treatment. Such conduit means will ordinarily includemembers, such as the flange 43, for positioning the cleaner, and alsomembers, such as the part 46, by means of which the cleaner assembly maybe secured in place.

To separate the cleaner into its component parts for filling, cleaningor washing, the following steps are carried out:

The stud 43 is backed off and disengaged from the member 46. It is thenraised and the overall cover plate 56 may be raised. When the coverplate is raised, it carries with it the screen member l which is securedto it, thus releasing the stirrup 53 from contact with the cleaner coverplate 39. The cover plate 39 may be raised and carries with it, whenthus raised, the filter body, including the filter mass 32, the shell 28and the outlet passage member 24, and also the screen portions 33 and35, as well a the baffle member I5, 20. The separation just describedmay leave the cup member II in place about the outlet conduit 42, andthe rings 2 and 3 and associated parts will remain in place because theyare fixed to the shell I.

From the foregoin description of the separation of the parts, it isclear that the stud 48 holds the oil cup assembly and the filter massassembly of the oil bath cleaner together, and also holds the chaffscreen in lace. The stud further acts to hold the entire assembly inplace upon the conduit member 42. Therefore, when the stud is in theposition shown in the figure, all of the parts of the assembly are heldfirmly together in proper assembled position, and the cleaner assemblyas a whole is held in proper position upon the conduit 52. When the studis disconnected from the member 46, the cleaner as a whole may beremoved from the conduit 42, and the three main portions of the cleaner;namely, the chaff screen, the filter body and the oil cup, may beseparated for cleaning, repair, adjustment or other purposes.

It is necessary from time to time to clean the filter body by washing,and that may be done when the parts have been separated as described. Itis also necessary from time to time to replenish or replace the oil orother liquid which is normaliy within the cleaner, and that, also, mayconveniently be done when the parts are separated as above described.When the stud is no longer engaged with the member 46, the cup portion1', H may be readily lifted from the flange 43 and its contents emptiedfor replacement, and it may be cleaned by washing or otherwise.Thereafter, when it is again put in an upright position, its oil orother liquid is replenished and the parts are reassembled into theposition of the figure and the device is again ready for use.

, In an oil bath cleaner of the type shown, liquid is normally put intothe cup and usually oil is used. It is shown in position in the figureand it stands at the level at which it will ordinarily stand when thedevice is not in use; that is to say, when air or other gas is not beingdrawn through the cleaner. When the cleaner is in use and air is passingthrough it, some of the liquid rises from the cup and moves into thefilter mass. The amount of liquid which moves into the filter massduring operation varies with the rate of gas or air flow throughthecleaner.

I claim:

1. In combination in an air cleaner, members defining an oil cup,members defining a filter assembly and members defining a chaff screen,and a single fastening member adapted in one position to hold said o-ilcup, said filter assembly and said chaff screen in predeterminedposition for use.

- 2. In combination in an air cleaning assembly, a member defining anoil cup and including a tubular air outlet member, a filter housingincluding an outer portion, said filter assembly including a tubular airoutlet passage member adapted to cooperate with said first mentioned airoutlet passage member to form therewith a continuous outlet passagemember through which air leaves the cleaner, a cover plate positioned tooverlie said air cleaner and positioned above said air outlet passagemember, a chaff screen positioned outwardly from said oil cup, a membersecured to said oil cup and positioned to engage said chaff screen, acover plate secured to said chaff screen and overlying the area boundedby said chafi screen, a joining means comprising a part positionedwithin said air outlet passage extending through said air cleaner coverand extending through said chaff screen cover, and means for moving saidjoining means to hold said oil cup, said filter housing, and said chaffscreen and its cover in predetermined assembled position.

3. In combination in an air cleaning assembly, a member defining an oilcup and including a tubular air outlet member, a filter housingincluding an outer portion, said filter assembly including a tubular airoutlet passage member adapted to cooperate with said first mentioned airoutlet passage memlzer to form therewith a continuous outlet passagemember through which air leaves the cleaner, a cover plate positioned tooverlie said air cleaner and positioned above said air outlet passagemember, a chaii screen formed of perforated material positionedoutwardly from said oil cup, a member secured to said oil cup andpositioned to surround and engage said chaff screen, a cover platepermanently secured to said chaff screen and overlying the area boundedby said chaff screen, a single joining means comprising a partpositioned within said air outlet passage extending through said aircleaner cover and extending through said chaff screen cover, and meansfor moving said joining means to hold said oil cup, said filter housing,and said chaff screen and its cover in predetermined assembled position.

4. In combination in an air cleaning assembly, a member defining an oilcup and including a tubular air outlet member, a filter housingincluding an outer portion, said filter assembly including a tubular airoutlet passage member adapted to cooperate with said first mentioned airoutlet passage member to form therewith a continuous outlet passagemember through which air leaves the cleaner, a cover plate positioned tooverlie said air cleaner and positioned above said air outlet passagemember, a chaff screen positioned outwardly from said oil cup, a membersecured to said oil cup and positioned to engage said chaff screen, acover plate secured to said chaff screen and overlying the area boundedby said chaff screen, a joining means comprising a part positionedwithin said air outlet passage extending through said air cleaner coverand extending through said chaff screen cover, a stirrup-like memberfixed to said chair screen cover and adapted to contact said cleanercover, and means for moving said joining means to hold said oil cup,said filter housing, and said chaff screen and its cover inpredetermined assembled position.

5. In combination in an air cleaning assembly, a member defining an oilcup and including a tubular air outlet member centrally thereof, afiller housing including an outer portion adapted, when the filterhousing is assembled within the oil cup, to form therewith an annularair inlet passage, said filter assembly including a tubular air outletpassage member adapted to cooperate with said first mentioned air outletpassage member to form therewith a continuous outlet passage memberthrough which air leaves the cleaner, a mass of filter material Withinsaid filter housing, means above and below said filter material forconfining the same Within said filter housing, a cover plate positionedto overlie said air cleaner and secured permanently to the filterhousing and positioned above said air outlet passage member, a chaffscreen formed of perforated material positioned outwardly from said oilcup, a member secured to said oil cup and positioned to surround andengage said chaff screen, a cover plate permanently secured to saidchaff screen and overlying the area bounded by said chafi screen, asingle joining means comprising a threaded stud positioned within saidair outlet passage extending through said air cleaner cover andextending through said chaff screen cover, a stirrup-like member fixedto said chafi screen cover and adapted to contact said cleaner cover,and means for moving said joining means to hold said oil cup, saidfilter housing, and said chaiT screen and its cover in predeterminedassembled position.

6. In combination in an air cleaning assembly, a, member defining an oilcup and including a tubular air outlet member centrally thereof, afilter housing including an outer portion adapted, when the filterhousing is assembled within the oil cup, to form therewith an annularair inlet passage, said filter assembly including a tubular air outletpassage member adapted to cooperate telescopically with said firstmentioned air outlet passage member to form therewith a continuousoutlet passage member through which air leaves the cleaner, a mass offilter material within said filter housing, means above and below saidfilter material for confining the same within said filter housing, acover plate positioned to overlie said air cleaner and securedpermanently to the filter housing and positioned above said air outletpassage member, a, chalf screen formed of perforated material positionedoutwardly from said oil cup, a member secured to said oil cup andpositioned to surround and engage said chafl screen, a cover platepermanently secured to said chaiT screen and overlying the area boundedby said chafi screen, a single joining means comprising a threaded studpositioned within said air outlet passage extending through said aircleaner cover and extending through said chaff screen cover, astirrup-like member fixed to said chair screen cover and adapted tocontact said cleaner cover, and means for moving said joining means tohold said oil cup, said filter housing, and said chaff screen and itscover in predetermined assembled position.

MAURICE T. MOLER.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 1,751,915 Hall et al Mar. 25, 1930 1,828,816 Pierson Oct. 27,1931 2,062,548 Wilson Dec. 1, 1936 2,240,042 Kelsey et al Apr. 29, 19412,240,851 Lo-wther May 6, 1941 2,509,778 Moler May 30, 1950 FOREIGNPATENTS Number Country Date 354,790 Italy Dec. 9, 1937

